spinous

adjective more spinous · most spinous

1. Having many spines. The cetaceous tribes have their bones entirely resembling those of quadrupeds, thick, white, and filled with marrow : those of the spinous kind, on the contrary, have small slender bones, with points resembling thorns, and generally solid throughout.
2. Spine-like; spiny. It is however to be remarked, that these hairs are not of a spinous nature, as in the Mus fasciculatus and the Mus macrourus; they may properly be compared to bristles, having more consistence and rigidity than those of the Mus decumanus and giganteus; and in a natural arrangement, our animal stands
3. obsolete Of a person: difficult to deal with, prickly. He had the rough magnanimity of the old English vein, mellowed into tenderness and dashed with a flexible and spinous humor.
4. rare Of a subject: providing many difficulties, thorny. The spinous problem shifted from the how to find minima efficiently to what method should be employed to provide a better connection between the topography and the dynamics on the surface.
5. Having a sharp projection. the spinous processes of the lumbar vertebrae